UMD Notebook: Fairhaven's Ashley Brown not backing down at UMD

DARTMOUTH — In high school, Fairhaven's Ashley Brown made a name for herself with fearless drives to the basket, tenacious defense and a desire to run down every loose ball.

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By ED COLLINS

southcoasttoday.com

By ED COLLINS

Posted Jan. 11, 2014 at 12:01 AM

By ED COLLINS

Posted Jan. 11, 2014 at 12:01 AM

» Social News

DARTMOUTH — In high school, Fairhaven's Ashley Brown made a name for herself with fearless drives to the basket, tenacious defense and a desire to run down every loose ball.

She took a lot of hard fouls, but always bounced back strong and her final game as a senior ended on a hustle play when she went crashing into the scorer's table and hurt her shoulder in the early going of the Blue Devils' 53-39 loss to Pentucket in the Division 3 state semifinals at TD Garden in Boston.

"I only know one way to play and that's all out all the time," said Brown. "I always leave everything I have on the court. I was taught to play hard and never back down no matter what."

A 5-foot-5 freshman guard at UMass Dartmouth, Brown has made a smooth transition to the college game and coach Amanda Van Voorhis loves the energy that Brown contributes as a part-time starter and off the bench.

"Ashley is still a very aggressive player at both ends of the court, but she's playing smarter," Van Voorhis said. "She's a tough kid and her speed is her number one strength. She moves really fast with the ball and all she needs is a crease to get to the basket."

The Standard-Times Girls Basketball Player of the Year last season, Brown is averaging 6.8 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.7 steals while playing an average of just over 20 minutes a game.

She's shooting 41.4 percent behind the 3-point line and has been a nice addition to an offense that's averaging 73.3 points a game and has been powered by senior forward Erika Bornemann (16.1 points, 9.0 rebounds), freshman forward Megan Ronaghan (15.4) and junior point guard Kelsey Garrity (11.1).

"Ashley has been shooting the ball well and she gives us another threat on the perimeter," Van Voorhis said. "She's also helping us on defense. She moves her feet well and she has very quick hands."

Brown has started four games for the Corsairs (7-4, 1-1 Little East Conference), but she also enjoys coming in off the bench when called upon.

"I like being able to watch the game for a little while and see how things are flowing," Brown said. "Then, when I get in, I try to do my best and give the team a spark."

A liberal arts major who would like to be an athletic trainer some day, Brown felt at home with the Corsairs right away.

"It helps that we play a fast-break style similar to the one that I played in high school," Brown said. "I love playing up-tempo and running the fast break. Playing here has been a really good fit for me. I was able to step in and contribute right away."

The Corsairs are coming off a 74-54 conference loss at Western Connecticut State on Thursday that snapped a four-game winning streak and they'll have their hands full today when they travel to Southern Maine (8-4, 1-1) for a 1 p.m. matchup against the league-powerhouse Huskies, who have won the LEC tournament 20 times and have played in 26 NCAA Division III Tournaments.

UMD and Southern Maine are in a group of six teams who are tied for second place in the conference standings behind league-leading Eastern Connecticut State (9-3, 2-0).

Junior guard Jake Laga (15.7 points a game) and freshman guard Tucker Bouchard (15.0) are the leading scorers on the men's basketball team, which is scheduled to play a 3 p.m. Little East Conference matchup at Southern Maine today. The Corsairs are 7-4 overall and 1-1 in the league, where they're tied for second place with Western Connecticut State (7-3, 1-1). Eastern Connecticut State (8-4, 2-0) is atop the standings. ... Sophomore forward Mike Restuccia (4 goals, 11 assists) is tied for second among the leading scorers in the seven-team Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference, where the hockey team (2-8-2, 2-4-0) is sixth in the standings. The Corsairs, who are 0-3-2 in their last five games, are scheduled to host last-place Worcester State (4-6-1, 0-5-1) today for a 4:40 p.m. game at Hetland Memorial Rink in New Bedford.